Postmodern Traditional Music

How Tim Eriksen became perhaps the only musician to play with both Kurt Cobain and Doc Watson.

By Jeffrey Callen

Without doubt, Tim Eriksen is one of the most original American singers working today. Once you hear his voice, it is impossible to forget; its richness and intensity seem hauntingly appropriate whether he is performing New England murder ballads, Bosnian pop songs, or punk rock. Yet, it is always distinctly his voice, the product of a wide-ranging set of musical experiences. Eriksen’s musical career began as the front-man for Massachusetts punk band Cordelia’s Dad in the Eighties and along the way to becoming a leading expert on Shape Note and Sacred Harp singing, he studied South Indian Carnatic music and fronted the Bosnian pop group Zabe i Babe. It is somehow not surprising that he may be the only musician to have shared a stage with Kurt Cobain and Doc Watson. Eriksen continues to perform in a diverse collection of genres, including punk and Bosnian pop, but his primary musical calling is a sub-set of Anglo-American traditional music that he calls “Northern Roots” music… (to read more click here for the East Bay Express article)

Postmodern Traditional Music

How Tim Eriksen became perhaps the only musician to play with both Kurt Cobain and Doc Watson.

By Jeffrey Callen

Without doubt, Tim Eriksen is one of the most original American singers working today. Once you hear his voice, it is impossible to forget; its richness and intensity seem hauntingly appropriate whether he is performing New England murder ballads, Bosnian pop songs, or punk rock. Yet, it is always distinctly his voice, the product of a wide-ranging set of musical experiences. Eriksen’s musical career began as the front-man for Massachusetts punk band Cordelia’s Dad in the Eighties and along the way to becoming a leading expert on Shape Note and Sacred Harp singing, he studied South Indian Carnatic music and fronted the Bosnian pop group Zabe i Babe. It is somehow not surprising that he may be the only musician to have shared a stage with Kurt Cobain and Doc Watson. Eriksen continues to perform in a diverse collection of genres, including punk and Bosnian pop, but his primary musical calling is a sub-set of Anglo-American traditional music that he calls “Northern Roots” music… (to read more click here for the East Bay Express article)